If you know the song you’ll be humming it for a while – sorry. Lots to love about Michigan summertime!

A little cool when we arrived the first week of May, but it warmed up nicely and we have enjoyed our time here. Realizing we are more than mid way through our time in Michigan, it’s time for an update!

Our travel from Florida in late April was not exactly uneventful. Nothing too serious; accidents on I-75 near Tampa and Hwy 301 north of Ocala caused delays, so it seemed to take us forever to get up to I-10 to go east to I-95 near Jacksonville.

This is where a tire blew on the tow dolly! Jim heard it, knew right away what happened and maneuvered to the shoulder of the expressway with no problem. Luckily it was the passenger side and Jim went to work changing the tire. A State Farm safety vehicle showed up to offer assistance and give us a little more visibility to passing traffic. Soon we were on our way again.

Unfortunately, when the tire blew it caused a little damage to the dolly, including a missing fender and tail light. With a tail light missing, we put our set of magnetic lights on the back of the car and we were able to get a new spare tire in North Carolina. Additional repairs would wait until we arrived in Michigan.

Our week at Jordan Lake’s Poplar Point campground was very nice and as always, enjoyed our visit with Cheryl, Darren, Ellie and Norah.

On to Maryland to visit Beth, Kevin and Gemma. Once again, staying at Cherry Hill RV Park where Gemma got to enjoy the splash pad and playgrounds. A trip to Jones Point Park on the Potomac River near Alexandria, VA was interesting; a lot of history here, including a lighthouse that was completed in 1856 and remnants of a WW1 shipyard.

Always fun to stop to see our family on the trek north in the Spring. Oh, but not so fast! On the one day trip from Maryland to Michigan, the other tire on the tow dolly blew! Thankfully with the recently purchased spare, Jim was able to change the tire on the side of the Ohio Turnpike.

Likely a lesson learned from this experience is the tires on the dolly may look fine on the outside, but they take such a beating as we travel; we will be replacing them more often.

Once we settled in at Indian Creek Campground near Tecumseh, we have enjoyed time with family and friends. Jim has worked on RV and tow dolly maintenance and repairs; a big thanks to ICC maintenance person, Bobby, who did the welding repair on the tow doll! Jim has also been working with Dan on his basement finishing project.

Anna and Megan came out to ICC for “Lamapalooza” and we all watched the impressive Memorial Day fireworks. We have enjoyed catching up with friends Steve & Marie, especially our evening campfires!

Summer RV projects have included upgrading the mattress in the RV. Wilderness Mattress http://www.wildernessmattress.com is a source of nice quality mattresses made in the slightly different “RV” sizes.

We also decided to remove the sofa/bed (uncomfortable and never used) and replace it with a desk.

Originally we thought we would replace the sofa with cabinets and counter top to create more storage and maybe a sit up counter.

With delivery time for cabinets pushed way out and higher than expected cost, we found the desk on Wayfair. It fit the space, is nearly a perfect match to the other cabinets, and very cost effective. Jim has it secured to the floor and it turned out to be a really nice improvement as I continue part-time remote work.

A trip to northern Michigan at the beginning of July took us to the Traverse City area. A bit of a trip down memory lane going to familiar places we visited many times over the years with our kids, as well as when we were kids.

We stayed at Traverse Bay RV Resort in Williamsburg for the first time. With the entrance right off M-72, we never noticed it before as the park sits back off the road a ways. A very nice park with a lot of seasonal residents who purchase lots that are well spaced and nicely landscaped. Priced on the high side, it was a treat for our short stay.

Nearby Sleeping Bear Dunes, Empire Beach Park and the Bluff Trail, were as beautiful as ever, with Lake Michigan levels higher than last time we were here, especially noticeable at Old Mission Point. Such a good time visiting with my brother and sister-in-law (Milt & Linda) and friends Jerry & Connie (fellow RVer’s).

One more stop in Millersburg to visit Ken & Violet. Always a treat to park there (thank you to Bernard & Linda for the driveway use) and enjoy the peaceful setting on the Ocqueoc River. We celebrated Ken and Violet’s retirement with a boat ride and lots of fun! We just might be meeting them out on the road soon!

Heading back “down state” until we leave on or two month trip west on August 24th. I plan to post frequently during the trip; hoping to document many new places we plan to visit.

FYI for fellow travelers: A few national parks are still requiring advanced tickets for entry or popular portions of certain parks ; i.e., Rocky Mountain, Yosemite, Acadia (Cadillac Mountain Summit), Glacier (Going to the Sun Road). Information is on the individual parks websites and tickets can be purchased through recreation.gov. Also, The Navajo Nation has reopened Antelope Canyon near Page, Arizona for tours starting July 12th; highly recommend!

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